Bihar Flood Relief Intervention in East Champaran and Darbhanga districts, 2017

SSVK with the support of Syngenta India carried out a short term flood relief intervention in 17 revenue villages spread over 4 blocks of East Champaran District of Bihar in the wake of floods in 2017.  The intervention lasted from August 19, 2017 to August 31, 2017.

The overall goal of the relief intervention was to enable the poor and marginal families to break out of the current crisis resulting from the floods while the immediate objective was to extend relief support to the flood affected during the crucial period of non availability of food, and water by ensuring availability of both.  Though the needs were manifold, the proposed intervention, in light of the scale of tragedy and the constraints of resource availability, had to be prioritized towards addressing the food security and safe drinking water needs constituting the basics of survival.  The intervention was operationalised through servicing the flood affected by organising community kitchens which provided for two wholesome meals a day in the form of cooked food comprising rice, pulse and a vegetable. Community kitchens were preferred over dry ration support as the latter left the beneficiaries, under the given conditions, with the difficult, if not impossible, choice of arranging for cooking.  Moreover, it was felt that engaging the victims in various tasks associated with running the community kitchens will maintain a modicum of community conviviality which would also help the victims in overcoming their enormous grief.  Children were provided with milk and biscuits.  Additionally some provisions were made for ensuring safe drinking water.
As part of this intervention, flood affected people were provided with 2 cooked meals a day and  children were provided with milk and biscuits. Additionally 1 jerry can each was provided to 2000 families for storage of safe drinking water at the household level and 20 plastic drums were provided for storing safe drinking water on camp as a collective facility for the flood affected to access.
SSVK with the support of CASA and act alliance carried out flood relief intervention in 35 villages spread over 2 blocks of Darbhanga District of bihar in the wake of floods in 2017. The intervention was dry food, hygiene & dignity kit, lasted in December 2017.